Social Question

Teacup Puppies - What do you think?

Kind of a random topic. I was reading about teacup or ‘micro’ dogs; they’re those tiny dogs that actually look like 3-month-old puppies when they’re full-grown. It’s kind of a designer fad.

Because they are forced to be born prematurely, these dogs suffer a number of congenital and genetic defects. Many customers who buy them don’t see the dog live past a few months. I think it is completely unethical creating these dogs that suffer through a lot.. it’s like making a baby be born prematurely just because it would be ‘cuter’ or ‘smaller.’

18 Answers

@bellatrix I know. And I’m not entirely sure; I need to do more research. Think about how many things you can buy online or from private vendors that aren’t exactly ‘legal.’ From what I hear it’s possible even to buy drugs online, now. So I wouldn’t be surprised if there simply is little awareness of these dogs. And what are animal rights groups doing? I’m sure they are doing something but I’m not sure they are aware of all of the breeders and puppy mills privately selling these poor animals..

It kind of reminds me of Bonsai kittens, except bonsai kittens weren’t actually real and were part of an internet hoax (i.e. a cat grown inside of a jar)

I’ve seen a lot of teacup poodles, chihuahuas, yorkies, etc… and I knew that they were born prematurely most of the time, causing many health issues. But I have never heard that they were forcefully born prematurely. Do people actually induce dog labor? If so, those breeders should be shot.

They are quite hard to avoid with your feet if they get under foot. Life is hard for small creatures so they all need some unique way to thrive in order to stay alive out there in the real world. Little dogs don’t have that natural defense/ survival instinct so they depend upon their owners to make it through life. For this reason it makes sense their life expectancy would be short barring any congenital defects unique to them.
Get a Lab and be done with it. They are everyone’s friend and you won’t crush one with your feet.and they poop out of doors.

They are not small because they are born prematurely, they’re small because they’re selectively bred to be, which is what contributes to the genetic/congenital abnormalities. (Line breeding, which is deliberate inbreeding, is often used to produce a certain trait.)

There’s no physiological reason that a puppy born prematurely would be any smaller than a full term puppy as long as it received proper nutrition. It would likely increase infant mortality, increase complications, and reduce the profit margin for the breeder.

Like all fads, it’s stupid and harmful. But I suppose it could be argued that any breed of dog that was developed for anything other than function is no different. Even some breeds that were originally developed for a purpose have become so stylized that they have suffered harmful effects (for example, the bulldog, 60% of which can’t have puppies naturally and require a caesarean section, who often require knee and elbow surgery, who require surgery to have their nares enlarged and soft palate reduced so that they can breathe, as well as eye issues, skin issues, ear issues…..).

I strongly disagree with the whole “designer dog” fad, teacup breeds included. I really wish we would stop messing around with animals like this. I have no qualms about selective breeding if it is to eliminate health issues that a breed may be prone to (ie: certain cancers) but I do not agree with breeding for the cosmetic especially when it can have a negative effect on the animals health.

I also don’t agree with “designer dog” breeding because, by constantly churning out fancy mixed breeds (I saw an advert for Cavalier King Charles Spaniels X Pugs the other day – talk about a potential clusterfuck of health issues!) or teacups, it is adding to the problem of overpopulation in shelters. The more of these dogs that are bred and sold cheaply (you can often pick them up for under £100 here in the UK from back yard breeders that are looking to make a quick buck) the more dogs in shelters are being put to sleep. Whenever someone tells me they are in the market for a dog but can’t afford the money that a well bred dog often costs, I beg them to go and buy a dog from a shelter. My staffy cost me £90 from Battersea Dogs Home and she is the definition of “man’s best friend”.

Sorry, I didn’t mean to turn this into a rant about adopting over breeding, I am not completely against breeding for the right reasons, but the amount of dogs put to sleep because of over population in shelters is a cause very close to my heart.

@syz Yep. That is exactly true. I apologize.. perhaps some of my information was incorrect; I had read about them being born ‘premature’ on a website, but now that I think about it the website may not have been very credible.

It is true, too, with the bulldogs. I had heard about that. Pugs are also a breed that is pretty much there only for appearance, and they too have health (especially breathing) problems.